


Whenever You Need Me (I'm Right There With You)

by Youngblood_the_Killjoy



Category: Best Friends Whenever (TV)
Genre: Beware, Cute, Fluff, Friends to Lovers, Light Angst, M/M, Spoilers, diesel lost in time, hella fluff, honestly, i guess lol, lol i guess janet isnt important enough to have her own character tag, well then
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-04-27
Updated: 2016-09-03
Packaged: 2018-06-04 17:49:47
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 6
Words: 2,726
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6668377
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Youngblood_the_Killjoy/pseuds/Youngblood_the_Killjoy
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>The reason behind the suit (it's really quite stupid).</p><p>Title from "Whenever" by Forever in Your Mind.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Someone Somewhere Said Something (It May Have Sparked Some Sympathy)

**Author's Note:**

> okay so i saw diesel lost in time and ive had this idea ever since this is probs gonna be chaptered/long so uh...yeah  
> also BTRLover2211 (literally wrote that from memory lol) this is that baldo fic i was talking about before lol  
> anywho  
> enjoy

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> What started the whole thing from Barry's POV
> 
> Chapter title from "Skeptics and True Believers" by The Academy Is...

Cyd looked at the mystery man in the suit. They had jumped later than they had before, to the point where Cyd had just punched the guy.

"Come on, Cyd, let's jump back," Shelby urged. "Janet will be here any moment!"

"Wait, I just want to know who this guy is," Cyd wondered, letting her curiosity get the best of her. She walked over to him and lifted his hazmat suit off.

"Barry?" The girls gaped. Barry looked up at them in guilt.

"Barry...why?" Shelby asked in disappointment.

"I just...I just wanted to Renaldo to like me again," Barry looked down in dejection.

"What do you mean? Of course Naldo likes you. Why would you think otherwise?" Cyd consoled.

"Oh, don't play dumb! I heard you three talking last month. Remember?"

******** _One Month Ago_ ********

Barry and Naldo had been working in their lab, doing an experiment. Or, rather, Barry was doing an experiment and Naldo was watching him intently. Suddenly, Barry felt Naldo tap on his shoulder.

"Hey, um, Barry?" Naldo muttered nervously.

"Yeah, what's up, Renaldo?" Barry replied, still focusing on the experiment.

"There's, um...there's something I wanted to tell y--"

"Aha!" Barry suddenly exclaimed.

"What is it?"

"I remade the time tracking chip!"

"Congrats, buddy!" Naldo smiled. Barry smiled widely in return and set down the chip before turning to his friend.

"Now, what did you want to tell me?"

Naldo took a deep breath. "Barry, I--" Cyd and Shelby entered into the lab, saying loudly and in unison, "Heeyyyyyy!"

"Oh, hey, guys," Barry replied. "Renaldo, can it wait? I have to go get my notebook and record this process."

Naldo smiled. "No problem, buddy. It can wait." Barry smiled back and ran enthusiastically out of the lab. Halfway to his house, he realised that in all the excitement, he completely forgot that his notebook was in the Winnebago all along. He went back to the lab, but he stopped outside upon hearing the sound of Naldo and the girls talking.

"I have to tell him, but I don't know how. What if it ruins everything?"

"You'll be fine, Naldo. Barry will be okay with it," he heard Shelby say.

"Okay. I'll just...tell him we can't be friends anymore." That made Barry stop listening and get lost in his thoughts. _Why doesn't he want to be friends anymore?_ he thought. _What did I do wrong? Maybe I'm just not good enough for him. Maybe if I did something to impress him, he'd want to be my friend again! And I know just the thing._ Barry ran into Shelby's house, with a plan in mind.


	2. I Make Plans to Break Plans and I've Been Planning Something Big

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Barry realises something he always knew.
> 
> Chapter title from "The Phrase That Pays" by The Academy Is...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> im back  
> with more shit  
> for bfw  
> i just finished standardized testing cause ya know tis the season  
> and now i can at least semi-focus on stuff lol  
> this has been in my head for the past week and its changed so much but it just wound up reverting back to the same thing  
> kinda like the phoenix by fob  
> but anyway  
> enjoy  
> By the way I changed the title cause the other one didn't fit and I changed the summary cause the plot sure as hell doesn't thicken lol

Now Barry knew what Naldo had been trying to tell him back in the lab. Naldo wanted to tell him that they shouldn't be friends anymore. Barry was so confused, he thought things were going so well between them. They were the best of friends, besides Cyd and Shelby, nobody could beat them in a best friend competition (people had tried; they learned their lesson). What did he do that made Naldo not want to be friends him anymore? But no matter, because he had the plan to make Naldo like him again.

As Barry walked into the Marcus household, he saw Mr. Marcus on the couch, as he expected.

"Mr. Marcus, I have a question for you," he began.

"Sure, Barry, what is it?" Norm asked.

"Are there any jobs available at GloboDigiDyne?"

"Oh, of course, there are plenty. I could talk to Janet about getting you one, if you're interested."

"Yes, please, that would be wonderful." Norm stood up and took his phone out of his pocket, dialing the head office. Barry took a deep breath and walked outside and laid down on one of the chairs. His plan was in action. He would get a small job, which would lead to bigger jobs, which could lead to him being the next Janet Smythe. Naldo would be so impressed with Barry, he wouldn't want anyone else for a friend. Barry smiled to himself and closed his eyes, as he thought of all the fun they could have at GDD. They could split atoms together, Barry could give Naldo a tour, and they could use the money that Barry got to go out for dinner. And who knew, maybe Naldo would thank him with a kiss...wait.

"What?" Barry asked himself as his eyes snapped open. He sat straight up and swung his feet over the edge of the chair. Why was he having these feelings? Did he possibly...like Naldo as more than a friend?

"Hey, Barry," Naldo greeted him, thankfully interrupting his thoughts.

"Hey, Naldo," Barry replied. Naldo took a deep breath as he settled down next to Barry. _Oh no._

"Listen, Barry, there's something I need to talk--"

"Barry!" Norm called excitedly from inside the house. His tone of voice made Barry smile.

"Coming!" Barry returned. "Hold that thought for a second." Naldo smiled back. But it was a weird smile. Kind of...happy-sad. Barry didn't understand what it meant. He just passed it off as another one of those weird things that people do. He ran inside and saw Norm on the couch with a smile on his face.

"She said yes! You can start there tomorrow after school. You'll get to discuss your paycheck there as well."

"Yes! Thank you so much for this, Mr. Marcus!" He shook Norm's hand enthusiastically. Barry ran back outside to where Naldo was sitting on the same chair.

"Naldo, you are not going to _believe_ what just happened!"

"What?" Naldo asked.

"I just got an job at GloboDigiDyne!" Barry smiled widely.

"Dude, that's awesome! You've been wanting to work there forever! Congrats!"

"I know! And I'm getting _paid!"_

"Whoa, no way!"

"I know! Now I could afford to buy us some food that isn't old Chinese food from a fridge that doesn't work. Like...like _fresh_ Chinese food!"

"That--that sounds...nice." Naldo looked down and smiled, blushing slightly.

"Are you okay, buddy? You look a little red."

"No, no, it's fine. I'm fine."

"Okay, well, I'm going to go tell my parents. See you tomorrow!" Barry squealed excitedly as he did a little hop on his way home. He knew that tomorrow would be the beginning of a great way to make Naldo his friend again. _**Just** my friend._


	3. I'm Burning Up For You, Baby

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Naldo has heat flashes...apparently.
> 
> Title from "Burnin' Up" by The Jonas Brothers.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> did i name a chapter after a jb song  
> yes  
> yes i did  
> is this a fluffy filler chapter  
> yes  
> yes it is  
> will the story be progressing soon  
> you can bet your sweet ass it will  
> have fun

********Two Weeks Later********

"Renaldo!" Barry exclaimed as he saw Naldo entering the Winnebago.

"What's up?" Naldo replied.

"Guess what happened?"

"A monkey stole your underwear?!"

"Umm...no." Barry looked at Naldo strangely.

"Oh, I guess I was dreaming then." Naldo shrugged. "So what happened?"

"I got promoted! You're looking at GDD's new head of the experimental department!"

"No way! Congratulations!" Naldo hugged Barry, both of them smiling brightly. Suddenly, he stiffened up and hurriedly pushed Barry away gently.

Barry looked at him bemused. "What's wrong, Renaldo?"

"N-nothing!" Naldo stuttered. "J-just wondering what this means for you. Does it mean that you get paid more now or something?"

"Yes, and...I get to take you in for a tour!"

"Wow! Really?"

"Yup, and I feel that you'll be quite _impressed_ with what you see." Barry smiled.

Naldo smiled back before looking down at the ground. "Can't wait." He looked back up at Barry. "When's the tour?"

Barry was confused by his friend's actions, but figured it was another weird person thing. "Tomorrow. And, since I'm getting a raise, maybe we could get some food afterward."

Naldo blushed slightly. "That sounds nice."

Barry looked at him with a mix of confusion and concern. "Renaldo, are you okay? You're turning red again. If I didn't know better, I'd say you were blushing."

Naldo's eyes widened in panic. "No, no, just, umm...heat...flashes?"

Barry fixed him with a blank stare. "Heat flashes? If you're having those, you should probably ask a doctor about that. I could examine you, but that wouldn't do much, what with the lack of medical equipment. Here, let me--" Barry put his hand up to feel for a fever.

Naldo stepped away quickly. "Nonono, it's fine, I'll be okay."

Barry stepped forward again. "Renaldo, just let me--"

"Uh, coming Mom!"

Barry raised an eyebrow. "Renaldo, your mother's in Acapulco."

"Th-then I guess I've got a plane to catch!" Naldo ran out of the lab before Barry could say another word.

Barry stayed standing in his lab, staring confused at the door where Naldo had just ran out. _He seemed very flustered and in a hurry to leave, Barry thought. Almost as if he couldn't bear to spend another second with me. Am I really that bad? No matter, by tomorrow, he'll be impressed with me. And then he'll be my friend again, and we can get some food, share some laughs, kiss somewhere in between, do some experiments...wait._ Barry shook his head to help clear those thoughts. He shouldn't be thinking of Naldo this way. Naldo is his best friend, he wouldn't want to ruin that with a relationship. What if they broke up? What if Naldo didn't even like him like that? Barry decided that a few experiments should help him get these feelings out of his system. Though it wouldn't be as fun with Naldo "on his way to Acapulco."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> wow lotta dialogue


	4. Where Did You Go (Your Hand to Hold is Letting Go)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Barry gives Naldo a tour, when something goes wrong.
> 
> Title from "Call Me Hopeless, But Not Romantic" by Mayday Parade.

********The Next Day********

Barry walked into the next hallway with a fascinated Naldo in tow. He stopped and turned around to talk to Naldo, but he wound up making Naldo bump into him and almost knock them both down to the ground. Barry thought quickly and wrapped his hands around Naldo's biceps and caused them to be almost two inches away from each other, noses almost touching.

"Whoa, are you okay?" Barry chuckled. Naldo silently nodded and gently pushed himself away from Barry, looking down at the floor. Barry looked at him confused.

"Renaldo, are you sure you're okay?" he asked skeptically. "You've been really spacey lately."

"I'm fine, Barry," Naldo assured him. "You know I get spacey when I'm excited." Barry did know that Naldo got spacey when he got excited. _It's so cute when he does that..._ he thought. _Wait, no. No, it's not, what am I saying?!_ Barry shook his head and continued.

"Anyway, here is where I will be working." Barry opened the door and gave his office another good look around. No matter how long he would work there, he would never get used to how spectacular his office was. It was a clean, grey-carpeted room with large windows, showing him Portland's beautiful skyline. There was a large mahogany desk, freshly polished, with a large leather spinning chair behind it and three smaller leather and metal chairs in front for reports from the labs. There were multiple shelves filled with scientific books, some of Barry's favourite comics, and his awards and certificates of valour he's gotten. It smelled of lemon-scented furniture polish mixed with formaldehyde, and Barry couldn't be happier. He took one more deep breath before closing the door.

"Well, that concludes the tour," Barry said absentmindedly, as he turned through his keys thoughtfully. He took the one with the GDD symbol on it and inserted it into the lock.

"So, there's this new Italian place around here," he began. "Since I'm getting paid more, I wanted to treat you, so..." He turned around to see no one there. How long had it been since Naldo left? _He was here when we first got to office,_ he thought, _so it couldn't have been that long._ Barry was suddenly filled with disappointment. Had he been that boring? Was Naldo that desperate to leave him? Usually, Naldo loved that type of stuff. _Maybe it was just me,_ Barry thought dejectedly. He sighed and made his way home. That was it. He couldn't take it. That next day, he knew he would have to talk to Naldo about his strange actions. Even though it meant jeopardizing their friendship.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> lol i used some serious show dont tell here  
> hey english class isnt stupid  
> anyway  
> hope you enjoyed  
> blah blah blah comments rule  
> bye yall


	5. I'll Find My Way to You and Save the Day

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Barry makes a deal with the devil.
> 
> Title from "Happy Endings Are Stories That Haven't Ended Yet" by Mayday Parade.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> yo  
> so this is the second to last chapter before we get back to present tense  
> so uh  
> yeah  
> i literally wrote this in french and lunch  
> im a loser lol  
> this is really plot heavy lol  
> be prepared for this to go from like 10.572 to 100  
> enjoy

********1 Week Later********

It had been a week since Barry had last seen Naldo. At first, he thought that Naldo just needed some space. But as the days crawled on and the ignored phone calls and texts were piling up, he began to get worried. Soon, it had been a week and he was practically having panic attacks. He was about to go to work, when his phone rang. It was Naldo. He sighed in immense relief before answering.

"Renaldo!" he exclaimed.

"Shh, don't talk too loud," Naldo whispered in a panic.

"Renaldo, where are you?" Barry asked in a hushed but worried tone. "Why do I have to talk like this? And why haven't you been answering your phone? And--"

"Barry, look, I'll explain later, but right now, you need to help me."

"Why? Where are you? Are you okay? Are you hurt? Who's doing this?"

"Janet."

"Janet? But...she's my idol!"

"Yeah, well, you may want to find a new idol. One of her goons kidnapped me when you took me on that tour. I was having fun, but all of a sudden, there was a cloth over my mouth. Two seconds later, everything went black."

_So **that's** what happened to him before, _ Barry realised. _So he wasn't bored with me after all! Wait, that's not the focus here._

"Barry?" he heard Naldo ask worriedly, breaking him out of his reverie. "Barry, are you there? Please tell me you're there." 

"I'm here, Renaldo," Barry reassured his friend. "I just--I missed you so much." 

"I missed you, too, Barry." He paused. "Barry, in case something...happens--" 

"I won't let anything happen to you. I promise." 

"I know, but just in case...I have something really important to tell you. I've been trying to tell you for weeks, actually." _Wait, he wouldn't tell me that he didn't want to be friends as he's trying to convince me to save him, so...what was it that he had been trying to say all those times?_ Barry wondered. 

"Yeah?" 

"I--" 

"What are you doing?" A third voice cut in. _Janet._

"Um..." 

"Renaldo?" Barry interjected. "What's wrong? What's happening?" 

"What is that?" Janet demands. 

"It-It's nothing, I just--" There were sounds of the phone clattering to the ground and some scuffling of boots and sneakers. 

"Renaldo? Renaldo?" Barry yelled into the phone, near tears. Silence. "Renaldo, are you okay?!" 

"Naldo isn't available right now," Janet spoke coldly into the phone. "Can I take a message?" 

"What did you do to Renaldo?" Barry demanded. 

"He'll be fine...If you come by my office in one hour." 

"Barry, don't do it, she just wants--" Naldo's plea was cut off by his scream of pain. 

__"Renaldo!"_ _

__"So, Mr. Eisenberg, will I be seeing you soon? Or do I need to give you another reminder?"_ _

__Barry paused. He knew that there was a reason and it was probably a trap, but he couldn't risk losing Naldo. "If I go...will you let me see Renaldo?"_ _

__"Yes, yes, you'll be allowed to see your friend."_ _

"Then...okay. I'll meet you in an hour." There was a quiet noise: a blend between a choked sob and a whimper. _Renaldo._

"Wonderful." _Click._

Barry sighed heavily. He knew this was a trap, but what was he supposed to do? Naldo was the one person who ever listened to Barry. He's the only one who would ever hang out with him. He was the one who kept him from going off the deep end, all those years ago when they first met. Naldo taught him his people skills. Otherwise, he would just be some hermit with no friends and no one to talk to. Naldo was his best friend, his other half, the apple of his eye. Naldo was...the love of his life. 

_Aw, shuds,_ Barry thought. _I'm in love with Renaldo._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> whoa  
> shit got heavy real fast  
> what tf do you mean shuds isnt a word autocorrect  
> is too  
> anyway  
> next chapter last flashback chapter  
> it's probs just gonna be the banet meeting  
> lol banet  
> never again  
> #stopme2k16  
> but yeah  
> it's probs just gonna be that  
> and then back to the prezzy  
> thats probs confusing  
> thats what happens when you write a story about time travel lol  
> anyway  
> dont buy clothes at the soup store  
> kudos are kool  
> comments are...  
> cbetter?  
> sure yeah  
> lets go with that lol  
> well bye


	6. yo peeps

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> author's note

yo so this is just one big author's note cause i don't know what to do next. well, i know what to do next, but it's farther in the future of this fic and i don't know how to bridge the gap between what i know i want to happen and what's already happened, so if anyone that reads this could just leave a comment with what you think should happen next and i'll choose which one best transitions to what i want to happen next (i'd tell you but spoilers ya know) anyway thanks in advance


End file.
